This article was originally written by Conor Neville in 2014, after Kilkenny and Tipp drew that famous All-Ireland final.
Look up the word ruthless and you'll likely find a photograph of Brian Cody. It's the adjective many associate most with the legendary Kilkenny manager.
Here are five men who know all about the sternest man in the game's ruthless streak.
John Mulhall
It is a now a matter of gospel for many that John Mulhall was banished from the Kilkenny set-up after composing this little ditty which had its first airing at the 2011 All-Ireland homecoming.
Cody, who was smiling and laughing for most of the song (he really loved the wonderful lyric 'Martin Fogarty's from Comer'), announced when he was handed the microphone afterwards that we had just heard from 'a fella who is going to have the shortest inter-county career of all time.'
It may have been an accurate enough prediction, but does that mean the song accounted for the briefness of the career. Mulhall did feature in the following year's successful League campaign though he has not featured in the championship since.
Apparently, in a match programme before the following year's Leinster Final, three Galway players in a mischievous mood were asked who their toughest opponent was and all three of them answered 'John Mulhall.' (Awaiting full verification on this.)
Cha Fitzpatrick
Cha and Cody haven't spoken since Fitzpatrick quit the panel in 2011 at the age of 26, bitterly complaining that 'no matter what I did in training last season, no matter how well I played, it didn't seem like I was going to get a go at all.'
Mere months after Cha captained Kilkenny to the three in a row in 2008, he found himself shut out of the team as Michael Rice and Michael Fennelly came along.
Stephen Grehan
Another story shrouded in mystery and innuendo. Grehan started for Kilkenny in all their championship matches that season, including the All-Ireland semi-final win over Galway.
The Sunday before the All-Ireland final, Grehan came off the bench to score the winner for Spa United against River Rangers in the Maher Shield.
For the All-Ireland final, he was dropped at wing forward for John Hoyne.
Cody denied that the soccer match had anything to do with Grehan being dropped, giving a typically intricate reason for the decision.
John Hoyne was selected because we believe he is the right man for the job. Stephen Grehan is among the subs and, like the other subs, could still play a big role.
Charlie Carter
The most famous casualty of Brian Cody's New Model Army era. Carter was a stylish marksman and one of the darlings of the Kilkenny public. He was an integral part of the lethal forward line that slaughtered Offaly in the 2000 All-Ireland final.
However, the traumatic All-Ireland semi-final defeat to Galway in 20o1 changed everything for Cody. Kilkenny were bullied out of it by a more aggressive team and the manager made a solemn vow that this must never happen again.
From then on, physical conditioning and frightening intensity became priorities and some of the more flamboyant, Rolls Royce hurlers deemed to be sailing by on talent couldn't acclimatise.
Carter was relegated to the role of sub as Kilkenny won back the All-Ireland in 2002 and stormed off the panel early the following year.
Denis Byrne
Another episode from the Old Testament era of Cody's reign, Byrne was a leading light for Kilkenny (if not quite as glittering as DJ) during the bleak late 90s. He slammed 2-3 in the 1995 League Final as Kilkenny demolished Clare.
Fortunately, he hung around long enough to be an influential figure in Kilkenny's 2000 All-Ireland success. However, only a few years after captaining Kilkenny to the Leinster title, his star had fallen so far that he ended up doing the unthinkable and transferring to Tipperary.
